Family Time

On Sunday Jason's sister and her family made a trip to College Station to see us! We met them at Texas Roadhouse for lunch, and then they came over and spent the whole afternoon with us. Jason and Bruce took the boys up to the A&M campus, but other than that we just relaxed and enjoyed each other's company. It was so much fun! We laughed and laughed, and then laughed some more. We had to run out of the room a few times due to toxic gases, and Jason played wrestling games all afternoon. We had a blast and can't wait to see them all again in less than two weeks at the beach!

Here are a few (or maybe more than a few :) pictures I took...

Handsome Cousins

William and Bryson
Sheldon and Bryson

Phillip and Bryson

Kisses

Uncle Bruce

Learning to play catch...

William and Sheldon showing us their tricks. They are SO strong!

Phillip and Jason Relaxing

Playing with Aunt Julie's phone...

Loving that Aunt Julie!

Bryson noticed Sheldon's eyelashes- and wanted to pull them!

Uncle Bruce and Aunt Julie

Thanks for making the trip to see us! We love you guys!

Smarty Pants

We have set up a gate between our living room and dining room and it has been wonderful. It keeps us from chasing Bryson all over the house. He probably has fifty toys in the living room, but would rather be anywhere else (sound familiar?). And he is fast! We knew it was only a matter of time before he was able to outsmart the gate. Of course--- we didn't expect it to be this soon!

(Grandma: make sure you have the volume up so that you can hear what Jason says)

~~Mr. and Mrs. Zachary Lambert~~

"For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh." Genesis 2:24

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Friday morning we started decorating for the reception at 9am. Everything turned out beautifully! I don't think it could have been any better.

Then we went to get our hair done. Soon it was time to be at the church. The day was definitely a blur-- but we had such a good time. I didn't get many pictures because I was involved in everything. I am looking forward to getting the pictures from the photographer. :)

The Ruples (on our 5 year anniversary!)

My mother-in-law (Granny) was a LIFE-SAVER on the day of the wedding. She took the day off to come and take care of Bryson while we participated in all of the wedding festivities. She fed him, played with him, changed diapers, got him dressed for the wedding, and even brought him to the church! I am so thankful to have such a great mother-in-law. Bryson had a great time, too- as you can see from the picture below. He loves his Granny!

My Grandmother, Aunt Georgia, Amy, Me
Amy about to have the garter taken off. She wasn't so sure about all of this...
Amy and Dad...

~Mr. and Mrs. Zach Lambert~

Changed and headed for their honeymoon!

Of course I had to shoe-polish their car! I wanted everyone to know that they were newlyweds (you only get to do this once- why not live it up!?!?).

We are so excited to have Zach as an official brother-in-law and can't wait to see what their future holds. We know that God has big plans for them, and are honored to be a part of it all.

We love you guys!

The Rehearsal

Thursday evening we all met at the First Protestant Church in New Braunfels. The church is old and beautiful. It has tons of character and I can't wait to see the pictures the photographer took of everything.

The Bride and Matron-of-Honor

Matt and Shannon (soon to be Mr. & Mrs. as well!)

The Ruples

After the rehearsal we went to Adobe for dinner. It was so good! Bryson even enjoyed some tortillas.

I gave my matron-of-honor speech, and several other people spoke as well. It was really touching to hear others talk about Zach and Amy in such an affectionate way. I think everyone had tears at some point, and we were all rolling with laughter at times too. Overall it was the perfect ending to a crazy day.

Amy's Wedding Weekend

Last Thursday morning we (Jason, Bryson, Halle, and I) headed to New Braunfels for Amy and Zach's wedding. We were planning on leaving no later than 8am on Thursday morning, until all of our plans changed. Jason had taken his suit pants to get them hemmed, and forgot to pick them up! The alteration place didn't open until 9am- so our plans were completely thrown off. Luckily an employee was there at 8:45am, and let Jason go in to get his pants. We were on our way!

When we were about ten minutes outside of Bastrop, my brother called. He had stopped to get gas and his car would not start. We stopped and they boys worked on the car while I tried to keep Bryson entertained. After about thirty minutes of working on the car they realized that it was not going to start. Matt piled his stuff in the back of our car and jumped in with us. My Dad was heading towards Bastrop to deal with my brother's car, so we had to watch for him to give him the keys. After the key hand-off we were really on our way!

Here is a picture I snapped of Jason pushing Matt's car while Matt was inside steering. Not the best start to our trip!

We finally got to my parents' house and girls were already arriving for the Bridal Luncheon. Jason and Matt headed to San Marcos for the three-on-three basketball tournament Zach had set up.

The beautiful bride-to-be!

One of the tables my mom had set up for the luncheon. It was catered and the food was delicious! It was so nice to spend some time relaxing and getting to know all of the girls in the bridal party.

More of the wedding weekend to come...

Whoop!

Saturday May 15, 2010 Matt and Shannon both graduated from Texas A&M University. We had lunch at our house before the big event, then headed over to Reed Arena. About 1,100 people graduated during their ceremony, and Matt was the VERY last one of all of them. He definitely got the most applause! He graduated with two degrees- one in History and one in Zoology. He is going to teach for a year and then hopes to start medical school next year. Shannon is going to be a high school teacher, and got her degree in Biology. They both have jobs in the Grapevine school district and are set to start this August.

We are so proud of all they've accomplished!

The Graduate

Shannon, Matt, and Will

Congrats!

Deja vu (x2?)

Yesterday I spent most of my afternoon at the mall hustling around trying to find last minute items we need for Amy's wedding weekend. Usually I love the mall, and anything that has to do with shopping. But yesterday I would have much rather been at home with my boys, enjoying the beautiful afternoon. So, as I was literally running from store to store, trying to find a white button up shirt with no pocket, an outfit for Bryson to wear to the wedding, and shoes to wear with my dress, I was not in the best of moods. I was getting easily aggravated by sales people who seemed to have no concept of time, and shoppers who walked at the slowest pace imaginable.

Anybody who knows me well knows that a coke (or Sweet Tea) usually always make me smile. Weird I know- but there just aren't many things that beat an ice cold Sonic drink. I think I have my mom to thank for that. Anyways, I decided to take a Sonic break and try to relax for a minute- maybe enjoy my time at the mall. As I was standing off to the side waiting for my drink, I noticed a lady, also waiting for her drink, who looked very familiar. It wasn't long before I realized exactly where I knew her from. I had admitted her onto our home health services while I was pregnant with Bryson. The details of her heartbreaking story came back to me one piece at a time, until I remembered it all- that she is in her fifties, has a diagnosis of colon cancer, had to have a huge portion of her colon removed leaving her with a colonoscopy and a huge wound that wouldn't heal, and that she had a daughter about my age with a grand baby about a year older than Bryson. I even remembered where she lived. As I stood there remembering all of this, I noticed she was wearing a department store name tag. Here she was, working at the mall- also with a less than enthusiastic look on her face. Not knowing if I should speak I turned and faced her. I smiled, then she smiled. Of course- when I have the chance to speak or not, I usually opt for the first choice. So, I told her that I thought she looked familiar and that I was pretty sure I had taken care of her through our agency a couple of times. She immediately smiled, then went into all of the details of her illness now. It turns out that she has been doing very well with no complications after the cancer. Until recently. She just went back to the doctor and was told that the cancer is back. She has switched oncologists and is praying for a better outcome this time. She seemed very down, but was so forthcoming with her story. I wished her luck and told her goodbye. We parted ways. Weird meeting, I know. Weird that she told me all of the details of her life now. Weird that I know that she recognized my face, but probably has no idea what my name is (and I honestly don't remember hers either). So, as I walked away yesterday, I prayed for that woman. I thanked God for being in control of our lives, and for bringing someone along at the moment when we just need someone to listen, or someone to smile, or someone to pray. I walked away thanking God that even though I was aggravated at my circumstances- my circumstances were not too shabby.

Fast forward to this morning. I was taking Bryson to Erin's and at the last moment made a decision to stop at Taco Cabana for a breakfast taco. I have not eaten breakfast there in years. Anyways, I got my taco, then pulled back out to head to Erin's. While I was waiting at the stoplight, I pulled out my taco and was about to take a huge bite when I looked over to my right. There, in a white minivan with un-tinted windows was the SAME lady! I don't know if anybody else realizes this, but the Brazos Valley is a pretty big place. I was staring I'm sure, and almost wanted to hide my head for fear that she might see me and think I'm stalking her. What in the world!?!?!

So, I prayed for her again this morning. I'm not sure if she was going to her first chemo treatment with her new doctor, or just running to the post-office; but for some reason we were again in the same place at the same time. She's on my heart tonight, and I'm praying again. I don't even know her- but can't imagine being faced with the life she's living every day.

Thanking God tonight for His mercy and love.

~Court

On The Go!

Bryson took his first step on April 23rd, and literally has not slowed down! He can stand up without blinking and without any assistance from anyone or anything. He can walk along, squat down and pick something up, then pop back up again and keep going without ever letting his knees or bottom touch the ground. He can also practically run now- and does this whenever he knows we are behind him or trying to catch him (while he laughs out loud- so cute!). I can't believe how fast it happened, and still don't know how it is possible that our baby is now looking more like a toddler. I guess everything will fly by from here on out! It is so much fun to see him thinking about what he wants to do and where he wants to go next, and then watching him do it. Crazy!

Here are a few videos of him walking and dunking the basketball. Enjoy! :)

Those three little words...

It's a virus.

Ahhhhh!

Those have got to be the three words I was dreading the most when I took Bryson in to see the pediatrician last Thursday. He was running a temperature of 104.4 degrees and obviously very miserable. But, sure enough, they said them. It's a virus. Go home and wait. The fever should be gone by Sunday. Sunday!?!? Are you kidding me?

So, we came home. Paced the floors with a sick baby. Stayed up all night. Loved on that sweet little boy. Prayed for relief of this awful fever and pain.

God is good. Bryson has not had fever all day. He felt warm when I just put him to bed, so he got a dose of Motrin for good measure.

Praying things keep looking up...

Mother's Day 2010 (My First!)

"Praise be to the Lord, for he showed his wonderful love to me..." Psalm 31:21

Last Sunday I celebrated my first Mother's Day. What a sweet idea to take a day to celebrate all of the wonderful things that we do as mothers. I never could have imagined all of the emotions I would experience as a mother. From pure joy to fear to exhaustion to pride, and everything in between. What a ride it has been so far! And what a beautiful little boy that is everything I never even knew I was missing. I thank the Lord every day for him, and pray that I will raise him to be a Godly man who has a heart for others.

Here are the flowers Bryson got for me. Jason said he picked out "baby" roses so that I would know they were from him. :)

Bryson made this for me at Erin's house! (Thanks so much to Erin for making this day special for me!)

Here is the card that Jason and Bryson got for me. I was totally surprised to see that Jason had gone out and bought paint, and actually put Bryson's hand print in the card. Shocked might be a better word! I love this idea and have decided that I want a hand print every year, so that one day when he is eighteen and moving off to college (which will probably come way too soon), I can look back on his little hand prints and remember when he was so very small.


From my Mom- love it!
We celebrated by going to Red Lobster for lunch and then just enjoyed the day together as a family. It could not have been more perfect.

Here are ten things I LOVE about being Bryson's mom:

1. Hearing his infectious laugh. It is truly priceless.

2. Watching him learn as he plays. I can really see those wheels turning and am loving it.

3. His sweet but determined personality that we are seeing more and more of everyday.

4. He LOVES being outside. Whether it's in the wagon, the swing, the stroller, or just sitting on the driveway- he loves it!

5. His special bond with his Daddy. Melts my heart. Enough said.

6. He loves to be out and about, just like me. His attitude in general is much better if we are on the go.

7. I love going in his room to get him after a nap or first thing in the morning. He is usually standing up, squinting over the rail at the bright lights. When I walk in the room he immediately has a huge smile and then just wants to cuddle for a few minutes. LOVE that time with him.

8. He has never met a stranger. Looks like he will be a people person. :)

9. His face lights up when Jason says "Where's your momma?"
(Could it get any better than that?)

10. He teaches me something every single day and makes me a better person.

I love you Bryson DeFla!

"Her children arise and call her blessed;
her husband also, and he praises her."
Proverbs 31:28

Amy = Hardin Simmons Grad!!!

Last Friday I headed to Abilene for Amy's graduation. Jason was gracious enough to stay home so Bryson didn't have to be in confinement all weekend (5 hours in the car, sitting through a college graduation ceremony, then 5 hours back on Saturday). We really missed having them there, but Amy and I got to enjoy some special sister time. :) I spent the night on an air mattress on her floor. Saturday we enjoyed lunch at Zach's house and then headed to the ceremony. My mom and dad, Matt and Shannon, and Zach's mom Debbie Lambert all made the trip to see Amy graduate.

Matt spent most of the ceremony studying for finals that he had to take the next week.

Zach, Amy, Me, Dad, Mom, Matt, Shannon

We are SO proud of you Amy! Congratulations and we can't wait to see what your future holds. Love you!